Description: What is stronger than steel? Separated from the distractions of civilization, Nahid and Ren will be given the chance to consider this question. And if you haven't seen the movie, the answer is flesh, people. But what about when a person is at one with the weapon they wield? (Winner: Ren)
DEATH VALLEY, CALIFORNIA
For the first time, Nahid has been given a fight somewhere in the same climate as her native stomping grounds. She /likes/ the heat; she figures that alone is worth an advantage, though the going-into-evening time of the fight kind of cancels that out to an extent.
She doesn't like being thrown into a natural park, though. No people aside from the (small) SNF crew, nothing to drink, not much to do... "Lame," Nahid says, kicking a small rock and watching it sail. She stuffs her hands in her pockets and goes back to the little patch of ground she has claimed for herself.
Nahid's patch has a little folding chair and a cooler. The cooler has soda in it. She opens one of those up now and drains about half the can at once, setting it on top. THey were going to start soon, weren't they? She hopes so. Death Valley sucks.
Meanwhile, Ren HATES heat.
"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah it's so HOOOOOOOOT," whines the Kurosaki girl who has been plopped into the hot deserts of Death Valley, California with a mopey face. She's dressed in black kunoichi-like gear, looking VERY MUCH out of place in the middle of an AMERICAN desert and all. SNF crew go out of their way to avoid her, because when she is asked something--anything--the girl just whines.
"Who the heck thought this was a good idea? I hate this! I want cold weather! I want Japanese climates! This is lame! I want to go home!"
Huffing from her corner, the young kunoichi just pouts deeply (and comically so) as she waits. Meanwhile, Nahid is nearby, to whom the girl gives a wary eye. She looks kind of intimidating, Ren thinks, but her hair is SO COOL.
Several minutes later the SNF crew flag the two fighters down and go over rules and stipulations blah blah blah. Ren just kind of idly nods her head in response, eyes wandering toward the distant setup of soda coolers and delicious-looking foodstuffs elsewhere. In fact, the young kunoichi doesn't even hear when the SNF announcer goes "FIGHT" and allows the two to go at it.
"I wonder if they have chocolate chip mint ice cream," is all Ren mumbles, nearly drooling.
COMBATSYS: Ren has started a fight here.
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Ren 0/-------/-------|
COMBATSYS: Nahid has joined the fight here.
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Ren 0/-------/-------|-------\-------\0 Nahid
Nahid has a lot of hair. Without the tie in it it basically becomes sheer chaos.
Nahid finishes her soda in the meantime and crushes the can with one of her boots. She would kick it off except she's pretty sure there's a fine for littering, so she drops it back in the cooler for later retrieval. She sits through Ren's whining and the SNF crew explaining what needs to go on with about the same aplomb (poor; she lookes bored out of her skull and kind of irritated). She does spend the time to look Ren over, though.
"God, you're skinny," Nahid says, rolling her neck slightly. "I thought you were supposed to be the weapons girl but I'm pretty sure you'd kill yourself if you tried swinging a sword around." Having stretched as much as she needs to - not much - Nahid waits for the signal.
She hears it and is /not/ daydreaming about ice cream at the time (though she would agree; chocolate chip mint is amazing). As a result, she acts suddenly and quickly, taking two long loping steps forward before driving a stiffened hand forward, a palm strike if her palm had the approximate sturdiness and rigidity of granite.
COMBATSYS: Nahid successfully hits Ren with Stone Hand Soul.
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Ren 0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0 Nahid
"What, what?"
That is Ren's response when she is singled out for being too skinny (and she is, admittedly), followed by chiding about actually being able to wield a weapon. A deep pout follows as Ren shifts her weight and thrusts a hand forward. She /begins/ to try and say something, but Nahid is moving--fast.
Try though she may to just sidestep and swoop out of that incoming palm strike, Nahid's quick palm SLAMS into the girl with considerable force, sending the young kunoichi FLYING back, pinwheeling once before she lands on the ground. Two bounces later, Ren stops in a cloud of red dust.
Coughing and hacking, the girl shakily gets up and frowns. "W-well that was kind of rude!" she squawks, reaching to the pack fastened around her waist and at her back. A moment later a six inch piece of really thick steel is produced. Then, with a snap of her arm, it unfurls--resulting in a rather wide steel hoop.
"I can hold a sword well enough, I'll have you know!" she exclaims before she darts forward, leaping at Nahid. The ring is brought down upon Nahid, attempting to snag the young woman by her neck as she lands. If it manages to snare her the girl TWISTS the ring to flip Nahid around and ultimately slam her into the ground before yanking the ring back. Swinging wide, the ring erupts in pink energy, which she'll SLAM into Nahid and use to add a bit of insult to injury while she's on her back.
COMBATSYS: Nahid dodges Ren's Hanabie.
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Ren 0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0 Nahid
"Does that even /count/ as a sword?" Nahid has never seen a foldable steel ring before, and she looks at it with a little bit of confusion. "That's, like, a hoop. What, are you going to hula me to unconciousnshit!"
Unconciousnshit is a thing now, apparently.
Nahid dances backwards. She is not actually as fast as she could be, but apparently she's tough; at one point she backhands the ring to get it away from her, and it doesn't seem to hurt her hand any. "And okay, maybe it's a little rude, but hey, you asked for it when you signed up! If you couldn't compete you shouldn't have tried!"
Nahid steps forward again, that long stride that still never lifts both feet from the ground at the same time; she wants to stay anchored nowadays. Using the momentum, she brings her left fist around to slug Ren's stomach, hefting her up slightly with the force if she manages a solid blow. "So much for your ring thing!"
COMBATSYS: Ren dodges Nahid's Strong Punch.
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Ren 0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0 Nahid
"No!" Ren barks back. "I'm going to hurt you with it, that's what I'm gonna do!"
Nahid proves faster, however. Darting backwards, she avoids being snared by the ring, and summarily avoids being BLASTED by girly pink springtime chi. A pout crosses Ren's young face, eyes narrowing slightly as she hoods her black brows. Dang, she's quicker than she thought for someone who hits like a man!
"I can compete, don't underestimate me!" is her response as Nahid steps forward. Ready THIS time, the girl leaps back, spiraling through the air before she lands in a slightly-sliding crouch. A instant later she springs forward like a sprinter, ring in hand as she gives pursuit of the blue-haired woman. She'll bring the ring around and wide, attempting to slash through the air right at Nahid's ribs with /all sixty pounds of steel/. "HYAAH!"
COMBATSYS: Nahid fails to interrupt Medium Strike from Ren with Summit Drive.
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Ren 0/-------/----===|==-----\-------\0 Nahid
Nahid is kind of glad she avoided that springtime chi. She has bad results with that kind of thing. She would, however, object to that whole 'hits like a man' thing. She hits like a girl. You're not going to mistake her for a man, are you?
"I'm not /under/estimating you if you aren't any good at this," Nahid points out, although that's before Ren's mad dash forward. She can't get out of the way, she's pretty sure, but there is one thing she can use to interrupt the attack: superior height and her head.
*WHONG*
Several seconds later, Nahid realizes she is on her back, having slid along the rocky desert floor for about five yards. Her head hurts. This is probably because of the perfect red line across it where her skull impacted an edge of the hoop. To the credit of the hardness of her head, she isn't even bleeding... but she does seem a little too dazed to get up quickly, though the occasional twitching and attempts to stand are visible. She's not out yet!
Just... a little hampered.
"Uhhhh,"
This is Ren's response as Nahid is struck hard and sent flying sideways, wide yellow eyes blinking with disbelief. She didn't mean to hit her so hard she dies! In fact, Ren begins to panic slightly, hopping on her feet like she has to go to the bathroom while pointing at her AND while staring helplessly at SNF crew.
"I didn't do that intentionally! I swear! She put her head in the way!"
The crew just gesture to her to try and focus on the fight and actually keep going.
"But she's hurt, and I mean look, it's like kicking a puppy!" Ren whines.
They furiously gesture for her to keep fighting.
"FINE but if I get sued I am SUEING YOU ALL ENNETSU!" Ren exclaims as she levels her hoop before cutting it sharply to her side. A split-second later it erupts in vibrantly red, flaming chi before she swings it wide, twisting her wrist as the steel and fire cut through the air. The result?
A large gout of roaring, fiery chi launches at Nahid!
COMBATSYS: Nahid reflects Ennetsu from Ren with Solitary Peak Palm.
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Ren 0/-------/----===|=------\-------\0 Nahid
The delay is enough.
By the time Ren finishes claiming that she didn't do it on purpose, that Nahid is clearly too hurt to continue, and all the other assorted stuff, Nahid has groaned and gotten back to a sitting position. She does recover quickly, almost improbably so; she hurts, but she doesn't look too concussed.
She starts to push herself all the way back to her feet just as the flaming lash of chi comes /straight at her/. "I hate this shit!" Nahid yells. "I thought I was supposed to be fighting some kind of weaponmaster, not chi tricks!" She thrusts her hand forward, pulling energy from every portion of her body, pushing it out her fingers...
The flame splashes like it hit a solid wall. Nahid feels her fingers getting hot even though the fire isn't actually all that close to them; she pushes harder and there is a very faint ripple in the air, vague flecks of silvery light, before the fire starts to go back the other way at Ren!
Nahid holds the position until she's /sure/ the fire is done turning around, and then wipes an abruptly sweaty hand on her pants.
COMBATSYS: Ren parries Nahid's Reflected Ennetsu!
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Ren 0/-------/---====|=------\-------\0 Nahid
"Tricks?! These aren't tricks!" Ren barks, completely forgetting how she was paranoid about attacking someone who was (in her mind) incapacitated and wounded. Furrowing her brows, the girl watches as Nahid does the opposite of what she anticipated her doing--she's just STANDING there. Is she crazy?
"Are you crazy!?" Then--
She shoots her fire /back at her/.
"WAH!" is Ren's response, yellow eyes wide as she watches the flames roar back at her. Lifting the steel ring, she brings the still-burning hoop of steel up and cleaves THROUGH the energy while ducking through the momentary gap in flames threatening to cascade into her.
"That was pretty cool!" Ren chirps, "I can do that sort of thing too, y'know! Kurosaki clan secret techniques and all!" Skidding to a halt once out of harm's way, the girl swings her arm out to her side and grins devilishly. "Here's another~!"
Again, the steel ring ignites in pink chi flames. Reeling her arm back, the girl LAUNCHES it, the ring rolling fast and close along the ground like some girly buzzsaw--complete with chi-like petals roaring off the thing--to strike Nahid in the lower body and take her down before ricocheting off and launching back to Ren.
COMBATSYS: Ren successfully hits Nahid with Hanagumori EX.
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Ren 0/-------/-======|=====--\-------\0 Nahid
Nahid counters, "They totally are! Stupid chi tricks, all over the place! Think you're so good, because you can do it and I can't?" Being able to push things around doesn't count. Being able to fix her own body /sort/ of counts, but it's a lot less flashy and you can't light people on fire with it.
But her power aches. It's a weird sensation Nahid cannot describe, but it renders her incapable of repeating her trick from moments ago. She does not try to return the buzzsaw to sender - instead she braces and attempts to withstand it.
It hits way harder than Nahid expected it to; it does take her off her feet, causing her to stagger backwards, misstep, and land hard on her butt. At least it's padded... though she's not sure her wallet, in her rear pocket, is going to be the same.
Vaulting herself back up, Nahid lets out a huge breath of air. "So anyway, come on! Fight me with your weapon, not... that. Hit me with the thing, don't use crazy energy! I'm waiting for you." She makes a come-on gesture with her left hand, taking the opportunity to watch Ren and see what she does in response.
COMBATSYS: Nahid focuses on her next action.
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Ren 0/-------/-======|=====--\-------\0 Nahid
"Uh, it's not stupid!" is Ren's counter to Nahid's counter argument, a massive pout haunting her youthful features. "It's a very important talent and skill! I am from a long, esteemed line of demon hunters! We need this power to stop them and protect Japan--the world, even!" Somewhere, her clan elders facepalm.
"But you're just trying to distract me," Huffing lightly as Nahid holds her ground, the girl puckers her lips lightly before she tosses her head. "But FINE. I'll show you what I can do without my awesome Kurosaki-blessed energy!"
Breaking off into a dash as Nahid gestures for her to come at her, Ren LEAPS high into the air and flips head over heels. At the apex of her leap the girl's body stiffens, her leg snapping out as she then and quite suddenly descends like a hawk, intent on driving her leg like a spike at Nahid's chest. "AIYA!"
COMBATSYS: Nahid interrupts Light Kick from Ren with Quick Throw.
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Ren 1/-------/=======|======-\-------\0 Nahid
"Well, when you find a demon," Nahid says, very seriously, "you can use it on them." Serious, that is, until her lips quirk up at the corners, and she has to muffle a snigger before it erupts into full laughter.
The other girl dashes. "About time!" Nahid yells, bracing her feet where they stand. She isn't going to even /try/ to get out of the way. This is where she excels, and she knows it; raw physical toughness.
Ren hits Nahid's chest as she pushes forward, into the blow. There is a certain amount of give there, which makes Nahid bellow, "And get your feet off my boob!" At the same time, her hands come up, gripping at Ren's leg, twisting once through about a hundred eighty degrees and tossing the smaller girl in the direction she'd originally been flying - just further.
It's aimed more or less at Nahid's old spot, too, complete with soft-sided director's chair.
"WHAT IS SO FUNNY" Ren loudly demands mid-leap as Nahid just stands there like a rock. Seconds before Ren's about to (in her mind) COMPLETELY OBLITERATE Nahid, the woman actually moves INTO the attack, followed by a startling demand to get her foot off her boob. "WHA--"
That's about all she gets in as Nahid reaches out and up, grabbing Ren by the legs and sending her flying into the director's chair. It explodes beneath all one-hundred and seven pounds of REAL ASS JAPANESE DEMON HUNTER. Ren doesn't move for a moment.
"Oh owwww," the girl mutters, staggering onto her feet before she frowns. "That was rude! I am not making fun of your mannish strength, you know!" Ren argues before breaking into another sprint. "And I'll have you know demons are REAL!"
She stops halfway between herself and Nahid, however; instead, her arm sails forward, using the forward-momentum to launch the steel hoop at mid-height at the blue-haired young woman.
COMBATSYS: Ren successfully hits Nahid with Medium Fling.
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Ren 1/------=/=======|=======\-------\1 Nahid
"Mannish strength, what the hell?" Nahid does not seem amused after that one. "I do not have mannish strength! What, you going to go after Chun-Li because she can kick cars apart now? I have one hundred percent womanish strength!"
She pauses, uncertain about her grammar. "Girlish strength," she corrects herself, since it sounds slightly more accurate.
None of her grammar-checking helps her deal with INCOMING HOOP, though. The ring catches Nahid about navel level as she starts her own advance; checking her forward momentum for a moment, Nahid stumbles before turning her now-stumbling charge into a shoulder check, followed by a quick stomp if she's actually managed to bowl Ren over. Which is doubtful, but she's hoping. "You just keep dreaming, kid!"
COMBATSYS: Nahid successfully hits Ren with Combo Attack.
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Ren 1/---====/=======|=======\-------\1 Nahid
"Whoa, she can??" Ren wonders in response almost immediately, yellow eyes wide. "That's so cool! Can you do that? Do it! Hurry, someone get a car!"
Meanwhile, Nahid is struck by the ring, which ricochets off her KILLER ABS before snapping back into Ren's grasp. All the while, Ren is looking the other way, completely multitasking for the moment. She didn't, however, expect Nahid to come stomping in like a bull; struck by the girl's shoulder check, Ren issues a loud "HUFF" of pain before she's stomped on upon being slammed into the ground.
"Urrrgh why does it hurt…??" Ren wonders, dazed and confused as she staggers to her feet. She spends a moment gathering her bearings before she shakes her head. "Pfft, that's it! Time to unleash my ultimate technique!"
Squaring her shoulders, Ren hoists the ring upwards. It begins to shimmer an ominous white.
"Jyoya--!!"
Ren's entire form momentarily flickers; seconds after there are eight hazy white clones of Ren standing around, mirroring her actions, with Ren in the middle of the duplicates. With a cry the girl dashes at Nahid; as well, the 'clones' leap in too, unleashing a rapid series of slashes and cuts with the ring in hand, each slash like biting cold, no thanks to the chi. After twelve of these lashes each clone and Ren hoist their ring overhead before bringing it DOWN, a massive column of icy white chi erupting beneath Nahid if she's caught in the middle!
"NO KANEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"
COMBATSYS: Ren successfully hits Nahid with Jyoya No Kane.
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Ren 0/-------/-------|=======\=====--\1 Nahid
Nahid has never tried to break a car, so her response is "Of course! And it hurts because I'm damn good at this. Try to keep up!"
Nahid, however, has little success against chi, and this is no different. She has no idea if she can beat up the misty images; she assumes she can if they are trying to attack her, but her offensive blocks (shoving) don't seem to do much, given how many of the blows land.
Covered with little cuts and wounds, Nahid bellows as much in anger as pain when the pillar of ice erupts. She goes up, the sudden surge enough to literally launch her - and she lands again several seconds later. On her back, painfully.
"Ow," she grunts. "Okay. Okay, you're good, I admit it," Nahid continues, picking herself up, ignoring the blood and the fact that she feels like she just stepped out of the desert and into the wilderness of Canada or something. She's /cold/! "But that's still just a damn trick and I'm not going to be stopped by it! Come on!"
Nahid half-lunges, half-staggers forward. Her hail of blows comes suddenly, her fists moving so fast they almost blur; the sheer number of impacts she can deliver in just a few seconds is impressive, even if it leaves her even sorer afterwards. She can heal, but she can't do it all at once when she's attacked that painfully!
COMBATSYS: Nahid successfully hits Ren with Avalanche Fist Cascade.
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Ren 0/-------/---====|=====--\-------\0 Nahid
It's likely Ren would offer a quick retort, but she's in the middle of twinking out with chi.
In any case, the forms of icy chi flicker out of existence as the pillar engulfs Nahid, consuming her in its frosty pain. When the pillar subsides and she lands on the ground, Ren just puckers her lips and whistles. "That looked pretty painful," she observes. "Hope you're okay!"
Then--gasp! A compliment. "Aww, thank you!" she chirps--only to pout deeply as she renegs by saying she's using tricks. "It's a valid strategy, not a trick!" Ren argues, stomping her foot. "Why can't you accept it!?"
That's when Nahid stagger-lungers into her, SLAMMING Ren hard with several, painful impacts that send her flying several feet again. When Ren lands, she flops head over heels, landing on her back and half-crooked against the cooler of beverages.
"Hrrngh that hurt too," the girl mulls, forcing herself back onto her feet. She's sore, she is bleeding out of her nose and the corner of her mouth and her entire body feels like she just got hit by a truck. But--
"I will show you that this is no trick! It's all me!"
The ring again ignites with icy white energy, white fire that trails what look like snowflakes as Ren rushes in at Nahid. She'll deliver three spinning strikes- -one high, one low, one medium before she leaps up and delivers a horizontal downward slash, the ground struck and also exploding with icy white chi at Nahid's feet. "SHIMOBASHIRA!"
COMBATSYS: Ren successfully hits Nahid with Shimobashira.
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Ren 0/-------/--=====|=======\-------\1 Nahid
"Fine," Nahid manages to get out. "It's you. Happy? At least you're not throwing shit at me all day."
Nahid seems less inclined to bounce on her feet or try darting around at this point; she's slow, pained, and a little out of breath, all of which make it a little hard to do that. She goes once again for the block and flubs it entirely; she manages to /sort/ of deflect the first swing, but the second hits that sore spot on her stomach from before, and the third catches her across the knees, leaving her lurching forward. The final strike hits her in the back and drives her down.
"The ice," Nahid gasps into the ground, "is getting old. This is a hot desert, not a cold one!" She rolls, suddenly, to the side, though she no longer feels she can actually get up worth a damn, she forces herself to try to attack anyway, whipping her legs at Ren in a wide sweeping kick.
But much as she forces herself to try, she... can't get up afterwards.
COMBATSYS: Nahid can no longer fight.
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Ren 0/-------/--=====|
COMBATSYS: Ren parries Nahid's Falling Water Reach!
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Ren 0/-------/--=====|
"Ahh, you said, it you said it!" Ren chimes, oddly excited about the admission, however fake or forced it may be. Chances are, Nahid just wants Ren to shut up--and that's pretty much what everyone wants. But that doesn't stop the girl from making her advance, slinging more icy chi around with that heavy steel hoop in her employ.
"Wah, are you okay??" Ren wonders--before Nahid's legs shoot out at her. Blinking, she leaps up and back, out of the way of the deadly legs that threaten to bring her down before she lands. Panting and heaving, the bloodied, messy Ren just gawks at Nahid before she sighs heavily in relief.
Did she win..?
Looking to SNF crew, they give the affirmation, to their dismay. Ren bounces a few times before she just falls backwards, landing in the dusty desert sand with a heavy sigh. "Oh god I hurt all over," she whines. "I need ice cream...my insides feel like they're exploded all over..."
COMBATSYS: Ren has ended the fight here.
Log created on 20:06:21 10/17/2010 by Ren, and last modified on 15:46:51 10/21/2010.